970 kilogram of drugs were seized over the past three years, Home Minister Imran Abdulla has said.
Speaking on a program aired on RaajjeTV on the occasion of the government's third year in power, Minister Imran said Maldives Police Service has advanced in its anti-drug efforts. This is evident as the amount of drugs being seized have increased significantly, the Minister said.
The Minister said drug issues have been an age-old issue in the Maldives and said it would require time to tackle such a huge issue. However, he is hopeful that the government will find a solution soon.
'These issues can be solved with state entities and the public working together. The police are doing important work to find a solution,' Imran said.
Amount of drugs seized over the past three years:
2018: 9 kg
2019: 284 kg
2020: 372 kg
2021: 315 kg
The Minister said the Maldives is being increasingly used as a transit point by international drug networks. For this reason, the transit areas are being observed more, he said.
Imran said changes had been brought to the policies followed in destroying seized drugs. Drugs in police custody were previously destroyed after ten years, said Imran. However, the policy has now been reviewed and changed such that it is destroyed within one month.
Although the Minister said 315 kg of drugs had been seized thus far this year, the amount seized in two recent operations is equal to this amount.
